Almost two months after the parliamentary elections in France, the country has still not got a government in place. – A situation we have never seen before. Raino Malnes, professor of political science at the University of Oslo, says that the country has been in a kind of limbo since the beginning of July. This has happened Early in June, the European Parliament elections were held. Parliament, one of the legislative institutions in the EU, represents the citizens of the member countries and is directly elected by them. Externally higher water levels in several of the EU countries. In France, the National Assembly (NP) made a snap election. This defeat caused Macron to dissolve the National Assembly in France, and call an extraordinary election. In early July, the result was clear, the left-wing alliance won the most seats. Since then, Prime Minister and Macron’s party colleague, Gabriel Attal, has led an interim government. The left side demands to form a new government On Monday, President Macron ruled out appointing a government led by the left alliance. According to the AFP news agency, Macron based the election on the grounds that it would be a “threat to institutional stability”. He has no faith that they will get enough support in the national assembly. At the election in July, the left-wing alliance, also known as the New People’s Front (NPF), won 182 out of 577 seats in the French National Assembly. Jordan Bardella and the leader of Marine Le Pen from the far-right party National Assembly, on their way to a meeting with the French president for negotiations. Photo: BERTRAND GUAY / AFP On the other side, the centrist alliance, which, among other things, consists of Macron’s party got about 168 seats and Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Assembly (RN), got 143 seats. Thus, none of the parties got the 289 seats that gave a majority in the National Assembly. – It is an impressive political effort to bring about cooperation between parties that are so far from each other politically, such as the Socialist Party and La France Insoumise. They have come together to challenge Macron and overcome the National Assembly, Malnes says of the NPF. Lucie Castets, candidate for prime minister from the left-wing alliance New People’s Front (NFP). She has stated to French radio that “Democracy means nothing to the president, and I think that is very dangerous”. Photo: Manon Cruz / Reuters He points out at the same time that the alliance is fragile, with major contradictions in several issues. The NPF demands to form a government and has proposed the presidential candidate Lucie Castets, an unknown bureaucrat according to the French newspaper Le Monde. Macron’s no has not gone down well: – The left side is being robbed of this election, said the leader of the Green Party, Marine Tondelier, according to AFP. Now they are asking the French to take to the streets and protest. Would have been important for democracy After several negotiations that have not led, two parties in the NFP withdrew from the negotiations on Tuesday. Malnes believes that the French president is running out of time, and hopes that the alliance will fall apart in the face of difficult issues. For example, an escalation in the Middle East conflict, which could make it difficult for the party to hold together. So says Raino Malnes, professor of political science at the University of Oslo. Photo: Christian Breidlid / news Marte Mangset, associate professor of sociology at the University of Oslo, believes that taking time out is not right for democracy. – The trickiest thing would have been for this alliance to form a government. Mangset says that although it is not certain that the NPF would have lasted long, it would have been important for democracy. This, she believes, would also have helped to reduce the aggression the French people have towards Macron. Marte Mangset, associate professor in sociology at the University of Oslo. Photo: Christian Breidlid / news Mangset says that it has taken a long time for the NPF to find a candidate, and that Castets has been open to negotiating with various parts of the parliament. – Castets believes it is possible to achieve cooperation on a case-by-case basis, for example by finding agreement with the National Assembly on matters concerning the welfare state and with Macron’s party on environmental matters, says Mangset. A new government should be in place by 1 October, when the government must submit a budget proposal for next year. Bad leadership Macron asked for an election in France after the far right won the EU elections. This still seems strange, says Malnes. – It is strange, and it indicates bad leadership. This decision and the fact that Macron has not taken better care of the support he had on the left to begin with, shows his weak leadership, according to Malnes. President Macron and Prime Minister Attal, the latter has led an interim government, even though he asked to step down after the election. Photo: TERESA SUAREZ / POOL / Reuters Mangset, for his part, believes that Macron will be remembered as an enormous force in French politics. They both agree that France will survive, despite the political challenges the country is currently facing. – The French use strong words, and the temperature gets high, but it usually works out, they conclude. Published 28.08.2024, at 10.48
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Seven weeks after the election, France is still without a government – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
